Category: Family Life

365 Days of Living Deliberately

How insignificant we seem; how trivial our troubles become, when our world is seen from high above the clouds. We are but a small speck in the palm of this great galaxy, yet each of us leaves our mark on every living creature we touch, talk to, type to— even Tweet. Every new day holds promise—it’s up to us what we do with that promise.

Sometimes, I feel so much pressure, so many To-Do’s, so overwhelmed. I squeeze every minute out of the day, until I’m running on empty. There are times I don’t even remember how I lived it—or if I lived it.

I’ve come to realize that the moments that matter the most to me—the ones I hold closest to my heart—were not full days or full weeks. They were mere moments. Minutes with tiny wings, fluttering by like fragile butterflies. If I’d blinked, I’d have missed them.

I don’t want to blink. I want to take each new day and hold it in my hand. Not like the tight fist I make when I’m frightened, or cold, or just being stubborn–but a wide open palm, welcoming a butterfly to rest its wings there for a while.

I want to experience each day fully—good and bad. To live in the moment, then let it go.

The first time our young daughter caught a snowflake on her tongue. The look on my father’s face as we danced on my wedding day. My mother singing along to Bon Jovi, inciting our feisty toddler to reply back, “No, it’s MY life!” My husband giving up his airplane window seat (and holding my Starbucks coffee for me) so I could capture images of the sun rising over the Rockies on the first morning of a new year.

This is a promise to myself to stop and take more careful notice of something or someone in my life, every single day.

Don’t blink, or you’ll miss it. I hope you’ll join me on my small adventure.